WASHINGTON— On Thanksgiving Eve President Obama will pardon two turkeys, Caramel and Popcorn, enabling them to live out their days in the comfort of a Leesburg, Va. farm. Unfortunately polar bears and many other species face a far bleaker future due to the ravages of climate change. The Center for Biological Diversity’s ‘Frostpaw the Polar Bear’ will maintain a vigil outside the White House on behalf of polar bears everywhere and urge the president to “pardon the polar bear” by rejecting the Keystone XL pipeline to help save these threatened bears from the worst impacts of climate change.

“The annual presidential pardon that saves two turkeys from the oven is a great holiday tradition. But we need the president’s leadership right now to save our polar bears from the oven of climate change,” said Peter Galvin, co-founder of the Center for Biological Diversity. “And President Obama can jump-start that process by stepping up and rejecting the Keystone XL pipeline, a step that’s essential to the survival of polar bears — and the rest of us.”

Frostpaw also greeted President Obama this past week at stops in Los Angeles and San Francisco. The events are the culmination of a months-long campaign by Frostpaw to stop Keystone that included a trip to Martha’s Vineyard this summer. And although it’s a long swim, Frostpaw will travel to Hawaii next month hoping that the president will reject the Keystone as a Christmas present to all Americans that care about our climate.

What: Frostpaw the Polar Bear in front of the White House urging President Obama to reject Keystone XL and take action on climate change. Visitors are invited to have their photo taken with Frostpaw and sign a petition to “pardon the polar bear.”

Visuals and Interviews: Frostpaw and Center representatives will be available for photos, filming and media interviews.

Background
Scientists say two-thirds of the world’s polar bears will disappear by 2050 if climate change is left unchecked. Dr. James Hansen, one of the world’s leading climate scientists, says the Keystone XL pipeline would be “game over” for avoiding the worst effects of the climate crisis.

The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 625,000 members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places.